Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1887-07-01
A Bureau of Immigration Needed.

A Bureau of immigration Needed.
The State of Maryland needs, and needs
sorely,a bureau ofimmigration, established
by progressive men, who, in a non-politl-
cal official capacity, will push this work
after the methods so successfully carried
out by the Western States, and more par
ticuarly the State of Texas. A move
should be placed on foot to secur from
the next Legislature such an insti u'ion,
but if 1t is to be officered by men who are
to be rewarded for party services, it were
better that it had never been attempted
Maryland lands should be subdivided and
immigration should he steered this way
A competent bureau of imnigr ,tion can
do this work.-Laurel Free QriU
We are glad to observe that our Laurel
contemporary will join in the agitating OF
the question of Bureau Of immigration
before the next Legislature. We nope
that the Importance of this movement
and the material adv ,ntages to result from
it, will be generally recognized by the
public opinion and ,liticsl action may
be properly brought to bear upon it. A
general recognition on the part of the
rural press of this great aud far reaching
economic question and concert of action
in bringing the public mind to bear up.
on it, will not fail of secu ing the adoption
of such a measure.
The TIMES has heretofore discussed q.
length the great and direct advantages
that would so pro.nptly result to oul
State, and especially the Southern Mary
land peninsula. from the practical opera.
tions of an immigration bureau. Nearly
all the Western and many of the Southern
States have such department of public
service and wherever it HIS been put in
operation the people have realized the
great material advantages resulting from
it and have willingly paid the taxes neces-
sary for its support.
The immigration service of the State oil
Texas, to which our contemporary refers
is very efficient one and would, perhaps
furnish the best model for the system to
be adopted in Maryland. During the last
session of the Legislature, the TINES re,
ferred to the Texas system as proper
model for our own. Their the State i'm.
migration agent goes directly to Europe
and visits the inland towns and villages
and the agricultural districts, setting forth
the advantages of his State and enrolling
desirable agricultural people for emigra'
ton to Texas. Taking them in colonies
aed providing their transportation. In
this way the agricultural population Of
Texas has been steadily increased, bel
resources greatly developed and her wealth
largely increased.
Maryland, taking the State as a whole
needs immigration as much, perhaps, as
any State in the Union. While this need
is not felt in the same degree all over the
State. yet every county could receive con.
siderable accessions to its agricultural
population with advantage. But the need
is more sorey felt in Southern Maryland
where agricultural system wss more seri.
ously revo.utiouized by the civil war. and
whose. former large plantations now present
so much waste and uncultivated land.
The latent resources and natural advant-
ages of this section of our State are con.
siderable aad its possibilities great. All
that is wanted to develop its resources
and materialise it, possibilities he more
people-more thrifty, selfreliant farmers
As the TIMES has frequently maintained,
whatever developed the resources of any
section of the Commonwealth. is a COM
mon advantage to the whole people
Therefore any public service tending to SO
develop and advance anv section of the
State should be and doubtless would be
cheerfully sustained by the people at large
This fact has indeed been fully recog
nized by the representative agricultural
people of the State. The convention OF
farmers held in Baltimore city two years
ago, composed of representative people
from nearly every county of the State,
passed q resolution urgiag the appoint.
ment by the State government Of an i'm,
migration bureau; and q committee was
appoint ID to lay the matter before the
last Legislature. But our impression il
that this committee did not exert itsel
to any very great extent; at any rate ",
do not recall that any movement at al
WAS made in the matter by the Law
makers.
Experience has proven, however, that
Legislatures-in Maryland certsinly-are
slow to move in an economic measure,
which involve small increase in taxation
If the people of the State become in earn
est in this matter their safest proceeding
would be to have the proper provisions
for an immigration bureau incorporated
in the ncw constitution. Then there would
be no option left to the Legislature and
the proper regulations for this important
branch Of the public service would b
duly made and enacted into law.
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